Baron Piquant’s Pas de Deux

Baron Piquant’s Pas de Deux Euphonium or Tuba and Harpsichord or Piano aron Piquant’s Pas de Deuxis one of a series of dance pieces based on characters drawn from voodoo lore; the previous ones are Baron Cimetiére’s Mambo, Son of Cimetiére, Baron Samedi’s Sarabande (and Soft Shoe), Baron La Croix’s Shuffle and Baron Piquant on Pointe. The four Barons are all members of the family Ghede (pronounced Gay-day), the spirits in charge of the intersection between the living and the dead. Despite this grim association, the Barons have a lighter side. All three are notorious tricksters with a marked fondness for brandy and tobacco. All dress alike—in black tailcoats and tall black hats, dark glasses with one lens missing, and carry canes and smoke cigars. The music depicts both their dark and light sides. Textures are primarily transparent and ethereal, but the atmosphere of all four works is a bit sinister, mordant and menacing.